I Love All Your Faces
by Kerjen
Summary: The love between mother and daughter is forever. It even goes back in time. Amy gets to hold her daughter Mels. Pond Family feels.


"A daughter is a mother's gender partner, her closest ally in the family confederacy, an extension of herself. And mothers are their daughters' role model, their biological and emotional road map, the arbiter of all their relationships." - Victoria Secunda

"A man's daughter is his heart. Just with feet, walking out in the world." - Mat Johnson

"A daughter may outgrow your lap, but she will never outgrow your heart." - Unknown

* * *

Amy straightened up the kitchen after a busy day. It started with meetings about what would be the next big thing for her perfume company. The second fragrance after _Petrichor_ had been an equal success, but what now? She had an idea of roping in her daughter, because the tagline __For the woman who shows no mercy_ _ kept playing around in her head.

The meetings ended with lines that were agonizingly too long at the shops. She thought about throwing the long sleeve white and black striped blouse she was wearing into the laundry, or maybe just her jeans, but decided it could wait until she changed for bed that night. Still plenty of time in the day to do something else.

An electrical sizzle split the air behind her, near the garden door. She could smell the ozone of time as she quickly turned around with a huge smile on her face.

"River!"

Her daughter sagged with relief. "Mother, you're here. I thought you both were home all day, but I came by earlier and nobody was."

"I had errands and last minute meetings. Rory took an extra shift at the hospital."

River nodded but she was obviously distracted. "We don't have much time."

Amy frowned. "How can you not have time? You have that." She nodded at the armband on River's wrist.

Her daughter came closer. "Because someone's about to come here and I have to leave before they do." She glanced down at her vortex manipulator and then hurriedly took her mother's hands. "I think you might like this better as a surprise. Just remember: you can tell her who you are and what you know. It won't hurt the timelines and it'll mean everything to her. It'll even get her through - what she has to go through. She'll know to file it with other things she couldn't tell you... for awhile. Don't waste the time with what was wrong. She'll know how you feel about it without you saying it. If you can get Dad to come home-"

An alarm went off. She squeezed her eyes tight for a second and then held her mother's hands tighter. "That's me, out of time. I have to go, but I'll be back later. Go look out the window."

Those first words tugged at Amy's memory, but River kissed and hugged her goodbye for now and hurriedly jabbed at the vortex manipulator.

The ginger stared at the spot with a deeper frown and then she shrugged. She moved to the window and pushed a button on her mobile's speed dial.

"Rory? River said you should come home if you can. No, she didn't act like something's wrong, just-"

A boom sounded down the road and Amy caught a bright light just out of range to be seen fully. Not an explosion, but what she knew had to be a portal opening. She had seen them before, including when River used them to get home in her university days. Luckily her neighbors weren't around to ask questions, not that she cared.

She ran to the door and flew down the steps. The throaty sound of a motorcycle engine came down the street and then there she was. Shorter waves of hair, the way it was before the long braids, and darker than her skin. A badass smile, bright white in contrast to her brown colouring, that said right now she was enjoying being out, racing around. Free.

"Mels," Amy whispered. The motorcycle passed her and she yelled, "Mels!" She hoped it wasn't too late.

She closed her phone without realizing she did it and didn't register Rory's voice frantically asking what was happening.

The sound of the motorcycle ebbed down the street and then roared as it came back. Amy ran down in front of it because she knew Mels had plenty of time to brake.

"Amy?" She turned off the cycle and smoothly climbed off.

Amy walked up closer so Mels could see she was older than the best friend back then in Leadworth. When those dark eyes squinted and then opened wide, she knew Mels had it.

"You're uh-"

"Older, yeah," she answered. "You came through a time portal."

She could hear Mels feeling around to what was going on. "Someone sent me the instructions." She shrugged. "Couldn't let it go by."

You sent it to yourself, Amy thought. She walked up until they were face to face. She leaned hers still closer. "I know who you are, Melody."

A light of hope flashed in Mels' eyes before she had to cover it. "Of course you do. I've known you for how long?"

"No. I know _who you are_. I named you, Melody Pond. Of course I know you. It's _me_." She couldn't wait anymore and, after all, she didn't have to. She pulled her daughter fiercely into her arms. "Penny in the air," she whispered into that ear.

She felt Mels' body tighten, fighting against believing because the disappointment would be too much to bear. Then a fine tremble ran from her head to her toes. "...Mum?"

Amy knew that it took everything for Mels to risk that one word. "Yeah. And the penny drops."

She was glad her daughter's bodies were shorter than her, because it meant she could easily cradle that head in the warm spot of her neck and shoulder, just like she did when it was a mane of curls. She felt the tremble become more noticeable. "It's okay, I got you, Melody. I got you."

The dam broke and Mels buried herself into Amy, as ferociously as her mother held her. " _Mother_."

Amy felt her tears run down her cheeks and Melody's against her neck. She tucked her daughter into her more closely, and words like _I love you_ flowed out and at last she got to say it to Mels as Melody. She hadn't seen her best mate and her little girl in this incarnation for so long.

She whispered, _Wherever you go, Melody, however scared you are, I promise you, you are not alone_ , because those words between the two of them on Demon's Run always soothed River from the terrors of the day into cuddling against her mother and easing into blissful sleep. Just as the sound of her voice had done with Mels before Amy understood why.

She felt and thought everything at the same time. _My baby girl_ with love and _The Silence has you now and Kovarian's coming back, but you don't remember who she is_ with fear and anger and _River said this would get her through those times_ with a plea that it was true and _Did you steal the bus yet?_ with fondness and _You are incredible and strong and brave and wonderful. Remember that_ with firmness and _We already have so many memories as your mum and dad, wait until you live them with us_ sand _I'm so glad you found us, Lorna Bucket said you always would_ and _I can't wait to hug you when you come home from when you left a little bit ago, so we can live this over again, but I don't want to let go now either_ and _Melody, Melody, Melody_ with love all over again.

Time was going too fast and she didn't know how much they had. River - her older Melody - would somehow tell them and then be home herself. A car came down the street and Amy was ready to tell them "Sod off" rather than move. Tires screeched as the car jammed to a stop.

A pair of arms came around her and Mels to hold them both tight. She felt the head move to kiss the top of Melody's.

Rory.

The three of them stood there in that tight, family knot for... both forever and not long enough.

Another car did come down the street and honked. Amy thought she felt Mels flip them off before it moved around them, yelling something. No one cared.

The moment came at last when someone had to say something. Rory did first. "You stole the motorcycle, didn't you?"

Mels laughed brightly through her happy tears. "Yeah, I did. I'll take it back... Dad?"

He nodded hurriedly to tell her it was the name she used for him. She smiled and her eyes watered all over again. She put an arm around his waist, holding Amy with the other. " _Dad_. You're going to lecture me when I get back, aren't you?"

Amy remembered. They had found out Mels stole a motorcycle, but the bus had been so monumental that she had forgotten memory until now. "Yeah, we do. That never changes, just so you know."

"It's our job," Rory said.

Mels grinned. "Wouldn't have it any other way," and buried her head into Rory this time as she pulled them close again.


End file.
